Wall-inset heater cabinet for bathrooms, etc.



p 5, 1939- A. MARCHAND 2,171,662

WALL-INSET HEATER CABINET FOR summons. mo

' Filed Feb. 15, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 5, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WALL-INSET HEATER CABINET FOR BATHROOMS, ETC.

2 Claims.

The object of the present invention is to provide a wall-inset heater cabinet particularly adapted for dressing and bath rooms, which combines cabinet and heater elements in such combination that the latter may be installed,

inspected and given adjustments and oiling through the adequate and convenient openings of the cabinet, the combination including means by which forced drafts of warm air may be controlled in direction to meet a variety of needs.

Further objects of the invention will be set forth in the following specification, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a view in elevation of an embodiment of the invention, and

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional elevation thereof, on the line 22, Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary lower right-hand side elevation, partly in section.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary plan view at the hinge side of the cabinet to illustrate the form of door stop strap preferably employed.

Figure 5 is an enlarged lower section elevation broken away at the grill area to better illustrate the adjustable blower casing.

Figure 6 is a horizontal section on the line 86, Figure 5.

Figure 7 is a vertical section on the line 1-1, Figure 5.

Figure 8 is a diagram of suitable wiring for the device.

Referring to the drawings, the device comprises a casing having a rear vertical wall I, side walls 2, bottom wall 3 and top wall 4. Each of these walls at its front margin is preferably flanged as indicated at 3x, Figure 3, or boxfianged as indicated at 4x, Figures 2 and 6.

The casing is wall-inset, and in the drawings, Figure 6, is shown inset between the wood risers 5 and in a metallic wall box 6 which may be of short height as shown in Figures 2 and 3, or, which may extend a greater height as indicated at Figure 7, which height may correspond with the height of the casing walls.

Applied to the front flanged edges of the casing is a door I which is preferably mirror-faced as indicated at 8. Upper and lower hinge brackets may be secured to the flanges 4m of the casing, one of the brackets being shown at 9,

Figure 4, and upon which the door may be pivoted by a pivot pin such as l0. Preferably at the top of the door may be applied a stop strap, the device in the present embodiment comprising an arm I I pivoted at l2 to a lug [3 on the door and,

in turn, pivoted at Hi to a second arm Hat.

Secured to casing top wall 4 at I5 is a stop lug, not shown, but formed by bending down an incut area of arm Hm at llxcc to engage the arm II when the door is swung open to the full line position, Figure 4. For conveniently opening 6 the door, a finger piece 56 may be projected from the door frame as shown in Figure 1.

Below the door is applied a flanged facing panel ll which is welded or otherwise secured to the side plates 2 of the casing, and underlying 10 the top flange member ii and welded or otherwise secured thereto is a U-shaped strip 58 as best shown in Figures 2 and '7. U-shaped strip i8 may be inwardly faced with insulating material as shown at 19. Upon wall i; of the 15 casing opposite U-shaped strip i8 is a similar strip 28 which may be inwardly faced with insulating material as shown at 2|. Upon the insulating pieces l9 and 2! may be placed a removable insulating sheet 22 above which is held 30 a removable panel 23 which may be of glass or other suitable material.

At its lower margin, panel I! is inwardly and horizontally bent so as to abut wall W, and likewise, the end margins of the panel ii are in- 25 wardly bent at I'lsc, Figure 6, to abut the wall. The central section of panel H is formed with a rectangular opening bounded by upper and lower horizontal flanges and end vertical flanges, and these flanges receive reversely flanged grill 24. 30 Rearwardly of the grill and within the chamber having at its top the removable members 22 and 23, is a horizontal frame plate 25 having spaced upwardly extending brackets 26, one of which is shown in side elevation at Figures 2 and '7, 35 each bracket having a flanged bearing seat at its upper end to receive a blower shaft 2'1, the shaft being held in. position by two straps 28, each of which is secured to the appropriate bracket by screws 29. Shaft 21 carries blower arms 27m 49 as shown in Figure 7.

Mounted upon the shaft and surrounding the blower arms, except for a discharge aperture, is an adjustable hood 30. For convenient adjustment of the hood the latter carries an adjusting 45 arm 3! projected forwardly through a notched slot at 32 in the grill. The arm may be moved vertically to adjust the position of the hood, and three notches are shown in the wall of the slot 32 (Figures 1 and 5) into which the arm, 50 which is of spring material, will automatically move for latching it in adjust-ed position.

In an end chamber separated from the chamber in which the blower is located, which separation means comprises an insulated wall 33, Fig- 66 ures 6 and 7, is an electric motor 34 connected by a universal joint 35 with blower shaft 21. In front of the motor, panel I! is provided with an aperture covered by a facing plate 36 receiving a socket member 3! into which member may be plugged any suitable appliance, as, for example, a curling iron, electric iron, electric razor, etc.

At the right of the chamber in which the blower is located is an insulated wall 38 bounding one side of a chamber in which is disposed the switch member diagrammatically shown at 33 in the wiring diagram, Figure 8, the switch operating finger 39a: projecting through a facing plate 40, the latter having a glass covered window at 4| in front of a lamp 42.

The wiring is shown in Figure 8. Upon closing the switch member through operation of the finger piece 39$, the current passes through Wire ts, the switch member, and thence through wire M to the motor, the return lead being through wire 45 to the switch and wire 46 to the line. The lamp 42 is bridged between the wires 44, 45.

From the drawings it will be seen that within the blower casing and forwardly of the blower are two spaced brackets 41 which support between them heating resistance members 48, the air draft from the blower passing in contact with the surfaces of the resistance members so that the air is heated prior to its emergence from the grill. The resistance members are bridged across the wires 44, 45, as shown in the wiring diagram. The line wiring may be led into the bottom of the wall box 6 and casing member, the latter being formed with an aperture for the passage of the wiring and to clear a nut 49 which receives the threaded end of the wiring conduit 50, the latter having a collar 5| engaging the lower wall of box 6 and the nut engaging the opposite side of the wall. The wires may be drawn through the conduit 50 and thereafter the casing pushed into the wall box 6 and held in position by the screws 52. The grill being removed, frame plate 25, with the blower and resistance heating elements carried thereby, may be inserted into the casing and the blower shaft connected by coupling 35 with the motor 34. Connecting the wiring with the various elements is a simple matter inasmuch as the door of the cabinet may be open and access to the tops of the three lowermost chambers reached by removing the shelf-like members 22 and 23, and these with the grill and panels 33 and 40 removed, adequately expose the said chambers.

The cabinet rearwardly of door 1 may have i any suitable number of removable shelves 54 and be used as the customary medicine cabinet. When the blower and heating elements are thrown into action by operation of the switch, direction of the heated air may be generally horizontal when the blower casing 30 is held in the position of Figure '7 or in a downwardly extending stream when the blower casing is in the position shown in Figure 2, or the heated air may be directed in an upwardly extending stream when the casing is swung accordingly.

For ready inspection, adjustment and oiling of the moving parts, the members 22, 23 may be removed which will expose the top areas of the electrical devices and their connections, this being ordinarily sufiicient exposure for the purpose.

The device is particularly useful in bath and a dressing rooms inasmuch as it supplies not only a wall-inset air heating device, but due to the form of the cabinet, means therethrough of reaching the electrical devices and their connections. The heated stream of air may be used not only for tempering the bath or dressing room in cool weather, but as a means by which the warm air under directional control may be thrown directly upon any desired object for warming or drying purposes as in drying the hair after a shampooing operation or directing streams of warm air upon babies clothing or clothing appurtenances and for drying the skin, etc.

Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows:

1. A wall-inset heater cabinet for bath and dressing rooms, comprising a casing adapted to be set into a wall, and having upper and lower sections, a door for closing the upper section, a removable panel for affording access to the lower section through the upper section, a grill facing the lower section, electrical heating elements and an electric motor-driven blower in the lower section adapted to throw a stream of air over the heating elements and through the grill, an electric circuit including the blower and heating elements, and a switch device exterior the grill for controlling said circuit, a pivotally supported blower housing having a longitudinal elongated discharge aperture, and a control arm connected to the housing and projected forwardly of the grill, said arm being adapted to move said housing to adjust the direction of the stream of heated air.

2. A wall-inset heater cabinet for bath and dressing rooms constructed in accordance with claim 1, in which the lower section of the casing normally covered by the removable panel is divided by transverse walls into a blower chamber faced by the grill, a motor chamber, and a third chamber, a finger switch and a signal lamp in said third chamber, and a removable facing plate having an aperture for the switch finger and a window in register with the lamp.

ADOLPH MARCI-IAND. 

